Was listening to my local NPR station, getting ready for work and hear that later that afternoon the head astronomer of SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) would be discussing the possibility of alien visitation on earth. That certainly perked up my ears between brush strokes; particularly so because I was quite sure that said person was a known skeptic/debunker of UFO's. So although interested in what he had to present, I readied myself for: a) the usual hack job, or (more unlikely)... b) an apparent change of mind?
Well, it didn't take very long for ol' Seth Shostak to show his true colors. Did he interview any commercial or military pilots or officers? Serious journalists? Did he speak with any astrophysicists like a Jacques Vallee- who thinks that something's going on (even if he doesn't know exactly what)? Seth did say that he knows him- but no, 'course not.
He "interviewed" a couple of UFO conference attendees, far from the brightest bulbs in the bunch and... there ya go- 100% proof positive, it's all in certain (dumb and/or crazy) people's heads. Case closed! You could practically hear him sniggering as he flipped the toggle switch to Mute. And if ya still had any doubt, he then interviewed someone associated with The Skeptical Enquirer who analyzes UFO footage. This openly giggling "expert" said he first looks for any signs of Photoshop or any other tampering in the videos he examines. He never stated how many films or videos do not appear manipulated, are not obvious forgeries, or could just not be explained. And ol' Seth? Well, he never asked. Very... scientific!
And there's the rub! Genuine, bonafide S-C-I-E-N-T-I-S-T-S will demand, over and over again (like Seth made sure he did me throughout our email correspondence) to personally hand over proof positive of alien visitation! And yet, and yet... their over the top arrogance allows them to never even consider that they apply the same degree of scientific finesse and scrutiny to their own argument! They will repeatedly imply how we could possibly expect that they should ever lower themselves to consider our findings, but will then insist we simply take their word on faith- instead of... actually destroying our findings with the scientific evidence and expertise they profess to wield.
I advised Seth I have no proof positive of direct alien visitation, but that there was considerable evidence of many an unexplained occurrence by: multiple trained witnesses concurrent with anomalous radar signatures, radiation readings, molecular changes in soil and plants, etc, etc. Seth was not swayed...
He rightly brought up that eye witnesses are not always reliable. Very true- and I didn't argue. But is each one wrong, every time? When multiple witnesses see the very same thing from multiple, independent vantage points- is it always mass hallucination or "swamp gas?" Radar is accurate and reliable enough for astronauts, and commercial and military pilots. Lives depend on its very accuracy and consistency on a daily basis! But when they demonstrate anomalous signatures- are they always temperature inversions, user error or mechanical malfunction? Always? Particularly when in conjunction with eyewitness and other radar sightings both on the ground and in the cockpits of jet interceptors that have been scrambled to chase said anomalies- on successive nights, as with the Belgium UFO sightings? What about Japan Airlines Fl#1628? Two of the more well documented cases. Could Seth absolutely prove: temperature inversions, user error or mechanical malfunction? 'Course not- just take it on faith, like most skeptics do even in the most well documented of cases. No need for scientific inquiry or certainty... They're scientists for Chrissakes!
Granted,
95% of all possible UFO "anomalies" are, in fact, rationally explainable! It's
the other 5% that (should) set the scientific imagination afire, and ignite the
inquiry that should no doubt follow. Fortunately, some scientists like: Dr. Jacques Valle (who began his life long inquiry when he regularly witnessed impossible aeronautical anomalies on radar- and was advised to ignore them), the late Dr. Allen Hyneck (hired to debunk UFO's by the USAF for Project Bluebook, who consequently quit in disgust upon realization that, no- every case could not be conveniently excused away), or a Stanton Friedman do take their science seriously. They rightly admit there are some things that modern science cannot explain- and that it is the obligation of science to make every effort to explore, investigate and explain... instead of rushing to excuse away each and every unknown as: Venus, the moon, birds, planes, blimps, drones, stars and yes, temperature inversions and "swamp gas" (the latter, a Dr. Allen Hyneck concoction he would later live to repeatedly regret). One endless loop of square pegs and round holes pounded relentlessly.
I casually mentioned how it was a given that any attempt to secure funding for the scientific investigation of UFO's or alien visitation was the automatic kiss of death for any scientific career. That is a simple fact; the simple fact as to why the only (known) organization currently investigating UFO's is MUFON, whose investigatory researchers consist of serious, dedicated amateurs volunteering mostly on a P/T basis. Amazingly... unbelievably, Seth replied that my assertion of career suicide when it came to scientists and UFO's was laughable at best. So I played along... Really? Could he please supply the list of scientists and publicly/privately funded organizations and institutions currently studying and investigating any alien/UFO related field? I uhhh... couldn't wait!
His "list" consisted of one anonymous scientist who worked for the British Royal Society doing... god only knows what (he never mentioned)! Not one, single American scientist or entity- not a one. Not one study, grant, research program- Nada! That was his damning, overwhelming evidence that thoroughly ran my reality proven assertion straight to hell. And whenever I insinuated the level of arrogance and dismissal he so casually employed whenever it suited him, well then- it was I who was insulting him! And I never bothered asking if he ever had to emphasize to his potential funders that his SETI investigation had Nothing (absolutely nothing) to do with investigating the possibility of alien life on earth- his organization has nothing to with us crazies; his aliens are safely sequestered in a galaxy far, far away...
End of Part 1
I suddenly have this strong urge to read Communion again.
ReplyDeleteWhitley Strieber, the author of Communion, has been pilloried throughout a good portion of his career and presented as a self serving huckster who will say or do anything for a dime. While he did make a considerable sum from Communion back in the day, his public humiliation thereafter by the press at large (for basically being honest about his continuing experiences) has cost him dearly- financially and otherwise. He has even taken considerable flak from some factions of "the UFO community" for admitting that (like Dr. Jacques Valleee) he really doesn't know what or who "the visitors" are, where they come from, how they get here, etc, etc...
ReplyDeleteI read Communion shortly after it came out in the eighties, and I took it to be an honest accounting of Mr. Strieber’s experience. Whether it was physical reality occurring in time, in the sense that we normally experience it; a dream reality in dream time, as the Australian Aborigines experience it; something that happened entirely in his own mind; or a combination of the three, I don’t know—but it sure was creepy.
ReplyDeleteThere are mysteries that we may never be able to solve. And that’s OK with me.
There'll always be mysteries. What ticks me off is when (on those relatively rare occasions) there's definite, often times corroborated evidence of unexplained phenomena occurring and the "logical" excuses made are not only often more irrational, but fly in the face of the facts as they actually occurred.
ReplyDelete